Brad Walker Article

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http://www.tribnet.com/sports/story/525 ... 6869c.html

For Brad Walker, it's all about 'peaking' - and when

DAVE BOLING; The News Tribune

Nowhere but in the vertical events does the term "peaking" carry such an appropriate image.

Through the various impediments that injuries have created, Brad Walker has been keenly focused on elevating his performance toward next week's Olympic Trials.

And he is peaking.

At 19 feet, 1 inch to be specific.

The Spokane valley native, who recently completed his collegiate career at the University of Washington, heads into the July 9 pole vault preliminaries at the Sacramento trials as the second-ranked jumper in the United States.

The top three in the event advance to the Athens Olympics.

"I'm injury-free and I'm just training now; that's all I have to think about," Walker said in a break from his final push toward making the travel manifest for Athens.

Stories on Walker tend to belabor the series of fractures that the demanding event has opened, sequentially, in his foot and his thumb and his wrist. So his capacity for physical mending and recuperation tend to be a persistent theme.

But it's possible that his pure psychological stamina for coping with the setbacks is even more extraordinary.

To have the speed, power and body control to thrust oneself over a bar that high is inconceivable (remember, you not only have to go up 19 feet ... there's the return trip to consider, too).

Imagine the fearlessness required; envision yourself grabbing a length of flexible pipe and trying to hurl yourself through a second-story window.

And then picture what it would take, after a series of broken bones, to willingly climb back onto that slender, bendy stick.

Given the visceral challenge of conquering those circumstances, Walker's competing against the best vaulters in the country may not seem nearly so daunting.

"In general, the key to most elite track and field athletes is just staying healthy," he said. "When you can do that, you can continue to build from week to week. But when you have an injury, you have to take time off and your performance falls back, and you have to redo it all."

His clearance of 19-1 in May in Phoenix left him trailing only former Stanford vaulter Toby Stevenson (19-8 1/4) in the national rankings. But vaulting success is a fickle and highly unpredictable commodity, especially in a high-pressure environment.

"It's insane; there's probably 10 guys who have jumped 18-8 this year," Walker said. "Given the conditions and how everybody feels, there's going to be a good number of people who could make the team. It depends on that day who is willing to put it all on the line."

Walker always has been a big-meet jumper, performing well at NCAAs and Pacific-10 Conference events, even if injuries were still a factor at the time.

"It makes me pretty confident that in most of the big meets I've ever jumped in, I've either (had a personal record) or won or had good performances," he said. "I went over 19 feet at the (NCAA indoor championships) my senior year. I've picked up a lot of PRs in the bigger meets."

The pole vault has been won by efforts between 19-0 1/4 and 19-3 3/4 in the past five Olympic Trials. If Walker is at his best in big meets, as he's displayed, his chances are extremely good.

"I've been working on a plan and making sure to peak at the right time," he said. "I'm jumping well now, with a couple 19-footers and an 18-10 over in Europe. I think it's just a matter of being mentally prepared for it more than anything else.

"More or less, I'm trying to work on it a day at a time and not try to get ahead of myself. But things are moving in the right direction; some exciting things are happening with my vault. I'm using some bigger poles and I think it's just a matter of time until I get another PR ... hopefully a big one."

Walker, an academic All-American who compiled a lofty 3.5 GPA in business management, enjoys the confidence of a close friend who understands the mentality of vaulting. His girlfriend, Carly Dockendorf, is a gymnast and pole vaulter for the Huskies. A native of Canada, Dockendorf qualified for her country's Olympic Trials, too.

"It's fun," Walker said of their relationship. "Most people don't understand the vault at all, so to have somebody so close to you understand what you're talking about makes it nice that you can share that part of your life."

What Walker does not have to share, despite all that he's been through, are doubts.

"It never really crossed my mind," he said when asked if he ever questioned whether injuries could sidetrack him from this destination. "I've never had anything that really held me back. I don't doubt myself; vaulters get hurt all the time and you're going to have to get over those things if you're going to be a good one."

Walker has already proven he's a good one. But next week in Sacramento, he's got an opportunity to, once again, significantly raise the bar.

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http://www.thenewstribune.com/sports/co ... 1444c.html

Ex-Husky vaulter ‘one of the guys to beat’

News Tribune news services
Published: July 24th, 2005 12:01 AM

His confidence soaring after capturing the U.S. outdoor pole vault title last month, Brad Walker envisions himself coming home a winner from the world track and field championships, set for Aug. 6-14 in Helsinki, Finland.
“I’d like to think I’m one of the guys to beat,â€Â